Horror Harding crash: more details revealed, picture gallery

Three people were killed in a horror crash in Harding in the early hours of Thursday morning. Police revealed more details that caused the horrific crash just after 5am on the N2 about 13km past Harding where two people burnt to death.

Captain Gerald Mfeka said that a truck, travelling from Kokstad towards Harding, tried to overtake another truck when approaching a bend. At that same moment, a breakdown services truck was coming from the opposite direction. “The breakdown truck tried to swerve to avoid the collision with the truck travelling in the oncoming lane. The truck also tried to go back into its lane however it was too late and they collided,” Captain Mfeka said.

Both cabs of the trucks disconnected from the trailers and the cab of the breakdown truck burst into flames. “The driver managed to escape with injuries but unfortunately, his crew burnt to death in the cab of the truck. The driver and the crew of the other truck died on the scene,” Captain Mfeka said.

The deceased’s names are not being released until their next of kin have been informed.

KZN EMS’s Robert McKenzie said that apart from the three people who demised during the crash, one person was critically injured and treated at the scene before being taken to hospital.

The crash resulted in a total road closure and traffic is still being diverted via an alternate route. The exact cause of the crash is being investigated by the police.

The KZN Road Traffic Inspectorate’s Zinhle Mngomezulu said that the heavy goods vehicles also spilled engine oil on the road’s surface. Traffic was diverted to Weza while the scene full of debris and oil was cleaned up.

Three counts of culpable homicide are being investigated by Harding Detectives.